Sumpter Township selects new board member: Don LaPorte

Don LaPorte was selected to fill the vacant Sumpter Township Trustee position left open by the death of William Hamm.
Trustee Hamm died suddenly Oct. 16 at the age of 60 of an apparent heart attack.
LaPorte and Hamm served together as paid-per-call fire fighters in the Sumpter Fire Department.
At the Nov. 24 regular meeting of the township board, Supervisor John Morgan moved the vote on the trustee’s position from the bottom of the agenda to the top so the new trustee would be able to take part in that evening’s meeting.
Supervisor Morgan said eight candidates were considered and to pick one will leave seven feeling rejected.
He said the decision was hard but he’s been told, “If you can’t stand making a decision, you shouldn’t be up here,” referring to the elevated board table.
Treasurer Alan Bates made the motion to appoint Don LaPorte and Trustee Matthew Oddy seconded the motion. The board voted 5-1 to approve, with Clerk Clarence Hoffman voting no.
34th District Court Judge David Parrott then swore LaPorte in and Trustee LaPorte was seated in Hamm’s regular seat at the board table.
“It was a very tough decision, to select one person out of eight,” Supervisor Morgan said. “If I had applied, I would feel a deep kind of rejection… We had to pick one out of eight and live with our decision.”
Supervisor Morgan said if they chose instead to pay for an election, it would cost the township about $8,000.
“I hope no one holds animosities,” he said and then the meeting turned to other business items.
At the end of the meeting under the Open Floor section of the agenda, Chris Walter-Hamm, the late trustee’s wife, got up to speak. She referred to a letter she had sent to board members asking them to reconsider their vote to name someone other than her as trustee.
Before beginning her presentation, she walked to the board table and shook Trustee LaPorte’s hand and congratulated him on his appointment.
Then, Chris began reading her prepared remarks:
“Thank you, John Morgan, for offering me the position, as it should have been, just as Debbie Dingell filled her husband’s seat, then ran and was elected by the people.
“I appreciate your efforts in trying to do the right thing. Thank you for your continued support.
“Peggy Morgan, thank you for relaying information to me through all of this when many others turned away and for always supporting me. Thank you for being a great friend.
“Matthew Oddy, thank you for letting me know how inadequate I have been on the planning commission. ‘I bring nothing to the table.’ I heard how inadequate I am in your opinion. You have also stated that my absenteeism from planning commission meetings as a reason to keep me off the board.
“Out of 14 meetings, I have missed six. Two were due to being on vacation in Florida with Bill, one was for a family emergency, two were for my medical training with the fire department, and one was due to being with Bill for one of his surgeries. I highly doubt anybody can consider this ‘high absenteeism.’ All absences were excused.
“Peggy Morgan was the only person to ever inquire as to why I missed these meetings. If you thought it was such an issue, why didn’t you ask me? You are not the chair I report to. When my schedule changed, I spoke to Jane Stalmack myself and let her know that I was coming back and that I would not be missing any more meetings due to Fire 1 and 2 training.
“Donald Swinson, we have had our differences …” Chris continued and was interrupted by Supervisor Morgan.
“This will lead to responses,” Supervisor Morgan said of her remarks. “Don’t be calling people’s names …”
“You let Mary Ban go on and on,” Chris replied.
“That’s different,” Supervisor Morgan said of Ban’s comments.
“I don’t think so,” Chris replied.
She then skipped over her personal comments against Trustee Swinson, Treasurer Bates, and Clerk Hoffman, and continued her final statement.
“This would have been a fantastic way for me to continue my husband’s legacy. This was what Bill wanted. He told me prior to his back surgery that if anything happened to him, he wanted me to take his seat.
“I am more than qualified for the job and was only asking to finish out his term. I have been heavily involved with this board thus far and will continue to do so. You will see my face at meetings and I will still be around.
“… You robbed me of something that is more valuable to me than you will ever know, just because you could, and for that you should be ashamed of yourselves. When you go home to your wives tonight, take a good look at them and think about how awful they would feel is they were recently widowed and going though this from a group of people they once leaned on and thought they could count on. I hope none of them ever have to experience anything like this. Thank you for your time.”
Supervisor Morgan said, “I hope it makes you feel better to get it off your chest.”
Chris objected to the comment, saying she will be fine.
At the end of the meeting, Trustee Oddy said he wanted to address Chris’ comments. He said because he sits on the planning commission he was asked his opinion of her as a possible trustee and, “I said I couldn’t give a good opinion on you because I haven’t seen a lot of you … because you missed meetings.” He said that was his only comment and he meant no malice.
In other business at the Nov. 24 meeting, the board:
• Approved the first reading of a new Medical Marijuana Caregiver Ordinance dated 2015 to replace the previous Caregiver Ordinance adopted on Aug. 23, 2011 and amended Dec. 13, 2011. Trustee Peggy Morgan voted no because she needs more information and will sit down with township attorney Rob Young to go over the changes. Trustee Morgan first tried to get the ordinance tabled but Supervisor Morgan said it was important to move it forward so, “Sumpter is not overrun by marijuana growers.” Young said this was just the first reading, not the adoption. He said this ordinance takes care of the problem. They had considered two ordinances, but two aren’t needed, he said;
• Approved a resolution establishing the fee structure for grade change applications involving cubic yards: less than 20 cubic yard of fill, $75; 20-50 cubic yards, $150; and more than 50 cubic yard, $450;
• Approved six board members and/or deputies to attend the Michigan Township Association conference Jan. 20-22 in Detroit;
• Heard Trustee Swinson report the Parks and Recreation Commission’s Turkey Shoot in October made $2,000, the most they’ve ever made;
• Heard Trustee Oddy report on issues before the planning commission. He said the updated ordinances coming will relax all the pressure on the Zoning Board of Appeals; and
• Heard State Rep. Phil LaVoy say he voted no on the road funding plan and he was just checking in. He said he would stay after the meeting to answer questions and listen to concerns.